Euro 2020 event in Greenwich

Caroline Pidgeon: What steps are you taking to seek to ensure that no internal combustion engines are used to provide power for this event, especially as the event will be part located in the Low Emission Neighbourhood?

The Mayor: The UEFA EURO 2020 Fan Zone at Greenwich Park has now been approved by the Royal Borough of Greenwich. As the detailed event operations plans continue to be drawn up, the GLA will continue to identify every opportunity to use mains power or other zero local emissions power sources. However, given the scale of the event and the location within a park, it is likely that some power will still need to be provided from generators. The GLA and our event partners are working to ensure any such generators align with the Non-Road Mobile Machinery (NRMM) Low Emission Zone.

Oyster weekly cap

Caroline Pidgeon: While recognising that a weekly Oyster cap now exists for bus and tram services further to your answer to 2019/19634 can you provide any assurance that at some point in 2020 an Oyster weekly cap will finally be introduced for all forms of travel where a weekly cap currently exists for users of contactless payment?
Please also provide an update on TfL’s discussions with Train Operating Companies on this issue and the response from the Information Commission on the sharing of data on this issue.

The Mayor: Transport for London (TfL) is working with the Train Operating Companies (TOCs) to introduce weekly capping for Oyster customers on all rail services in London.
Negotiations with the TOCs on the extent of data sharing are progressing well and TfL has now agreed at an outline level the basis on which data can be shared.
Before TfL can finalise the agreements, further detailed work is required to ensure that appropriate processes and controls are in place with respect to customer data.

reduce emissions in the taxi and private hire fleet

Florence Eshalomi: How many zero emission capable taxis are there currently in the Taxi Fleet? Do you expect to meet your target of a minimum of 9,000 such vehicles in the fleet by 2020?

The Mayor: The target of 9,000 ZEC taxis by 2020 was set by the previous administration to reduce emissions from taxis. It is no longer relevant because TfL has consulted on and is implementing changes to the age limit for Euro 3, 4 and 5 diesel taxis.
I am delighted there are now two ZEC taxi models following the launch of the new all-electric Dynamo Taxi in October. As of 6 November 2019, Transport for London (TfL) had licensed 3,215 Zero Emission Capable (ZEC) taxis and I am determined to help more black cab drivers make the switch. This includes providing rapid charge points, delicensing payments of up to £10,000 and supporting a £7,500 grant towards the purchase of a new ZEC taxi.

Evacuation of buildings with ACM cladding

Andrew Dismore: How many high-rise residential buildings in London have been vacated due to the presence of unremediated ACM cladding or other fire safety problems?

The Mayor: London Fire Brigade does not hold information on how many high-rise residential buildings in London have been vacated due to the presence of unremediated ACM cladding or other fire safety problems. However, LFB assisted Camden Council in decanting four blocks within the Chalcots Estate in 2017. The decant was carried out because of unremediated ACM Cladding.

The Government’s Manifesto

Navin Shah: Is the Government’s manifesto good news for London? Will it help transport and regeneration improvements?

The Mayor: The Government’s manifesto pledged to unleash the full potential of the UK, but if Ministers are to realise this ambition they must understand London’s importance to the success of the UK economy. That is why the Chancellor’s Budget and forthcoming Spending Review must not neglect London’s needs.
Without investment in London’s infrastructure to support its productivity and funding to address its social and environmental challenges London’s status as a world leading city will be under threat. Londoners have to grapple everyday with infrastructure unfit for a growing city – the tube is carrying 25% more people than it did in 2010, up to 5 million passengers a day, and its roads are more congested than in any other city in the country. Five of the top ten most congested roads in the UK are in London and 9 of the 10 busiest stations are in the capital. The future success of the capital cannot therefore be taken for granted. Without investment in London’s infrastructure to support its productivity, its contribution to the UK’s prosperity will be put increasingly at risk.
It is important that we make the case to the Government that, as the Conservative manifesto itself acknowledged, ‘the days of Whitehall knows best are over’. There is a need for a major and sustained programme of devolution to cities and regions as this would be in everyone’s interests across the UK. If London thrives, it supports the rest of the country to thrive. I will therefore continue to lobby the Government and the new Chancellor for a new devolution settlement that would allow me toimprove the lives of the people we represent.

Personal Service Companies

Caroline Pidgeon: Please publish a table showing how many current temporary employees at Transport for London have been engaged via employment agencies and paid through Personal Service Companies for (a) less than 3 months, (b) 3 to 6 months, (c) 6 to 12 months, (d) 12 to 18 months, (e) 18 months to 2 years, (f) 2 to 3 years, (g) 3 to 4 years, (h) 4 to 5 years, (i) 5 to 6 years, (j) 6 to 7 years, (k) over seven years. Please also break down the figures for each time period showing how many employees in each category were paid (1) over £100,000 per year, (2) over £146,000 per year, and (3) over £200,000 per year.

The Mayor: The use of temporary agency workers at TfL remains low at 4 per cent of the total workforce against a national average of 19 per cent. Where necessary TfL uses agency workers to provide short term specialist skills or where it is more cost efficient to do so.
In November 2019, the use of agency workers had more than halved since December 2015 and TfL is spending £3.5m less on agency workers per week than in December 2015.
Of the 304 temporary agency workers paid via Personal Service Companies (PSC’s) at 5 November 2019, 53 were paid the equivalent of £100k or more per annum and the breakdown by tenure and pay bracket is shown in the table below. Of these 53 earning in excess of £100k per annum, the majority were recruited in scarce skills areas, including 37 in Tech & Data, four in Procurement and three in Occupational Health.
TfL is committed to delivering its challenging business plan, which will require a multitude of skills and capabilities that cover a number of different industries. The market often determines how you can procure certain scarce skills, therefore the most efficient way to deliver this is through a combination of permanent employees, Non-Permanent Labour and consultants, providing flexibility as and when specific skills are required.
PSC workers at TfL
Of the 304 PSC workers, numbers at £100k and over
Tenure/ annual pay rate
All PSC workers at 5.11.2019
(1) At and between £100,000 and under £146,000 per year
(2) At and between £146,000 and under £200,000 per year
(3) £200,000 and over per year
Total number of PSC workers at 100k and over
(a) less than 3 months
40
3
2
5
(b) 3 to 6 months
29
2
2
(c) 6 to 12 months
48
2
1
3
(d) 12 to 18 months
22
6
6
(e) 18 months to 2 years
20
3
3
(f) 2 to 3 years
51
1
1
2
(g) 3 to 4 years
21
8
8
(h) 4 to 5 years
23
10
10
(i) 5 to 6 years
23
10
10
(j) 6 to 7 years
14
2
2
(k) over seven years
13
2
2
Total
304
49
4
0
53

Vision Zero Action Plan for Tram Safety

Navin Shah: TfL’s Vision Zero Action plan sets clear targets to reduce the number of those injured or killed in or on a bus by 2030. Given the new industry-wide concerns regarding the level of safety risk associated with trams, do you feel that the Vision Zero Action plan goes far enough in addressing tram safety on London’s roads?

The Mayor: The safety of the London Tram network is a key priority and is very much part of the Vision Zero action plan. Transport for London (TfL), working closely with the operator of the Tram network, regularly carries out reviews across the tramway to ensure that the risk of injury is minimised in areas where trams interface with pedestrians and road users. Recent work includes the introduction of additional signage at a key road junction, as well as carrying out risk assessments at the pedestrian crossings on the out of the town centre sections of the tramway to make sure they are as safe as they can be.
The network also has a comprehensive risk model which is regularly reviewed to ensure that all potential hazardous events are understood, with actions taken to mitigate against such events happening.

Surface Transport Drivers and Sleep Apnoea

Keith Prince: During her testimony to the London Assembly on 15 May First Group TOL Managing Director Jackie Townsend mentioned “We have actually identified a couple of drivers who have medical conditions. We have had two with sleep apnoea, which they did not know they had.” As a result of the findings of the Croydon Tram Crash Investigations and the Loughborough University Fatigue Study, has TfL directed its contractors to assess the medical fitness of drivers for conditions like sleep apnoea which substantially increase the risk of fatigued driving?

The Mayor: First Group TOL has made improvements to its fatigue management system as one of the recommendations following the Sandilands tragedy in November 2016. It is their responsibility to maintain and manage this system, allowing them to monitor their staff’s welfare and to encourage self-reporting of any medical conditions.
Transport for London (TfL) works with all its contractors to ensure that they have a robust safety management system in place, which includes welfare monitoring. These management systems are subject to review through TfL’s regular assurance visits.
In particular, the bus fatigue programme is also working towards all operators having a fatigue risk management system in place by summer 2020. This will mean that each operator will have a process in place for identifying potential fatigue issues and discussing staff member’s medical needs with them.

Romford - Emerson Park time lost

Keith Prince: Please provide data which shows the time lost to delays on the Romford - Emerson Park - Upminster stretch of the London Underground line in each year since 2015/16.

The Mayor: London Overground measures its services’ performance by Public Performance Measure (PPM). PPM shows the proportion of trains that arrive at the destination on time. On time is defined as within five minutes.
PPM % by year on the Romford-Upminster route
Year
PPM
2015/16
no data available *
2016/17
96.33
2017/18
99.42
2018/19
99.51
You will see that service performance has been excellent on the line once the inherited rolling stock issues were sorted out.
London Overground remains one of the most reliable rail networks in the country with its PPM Moving Annual Average, the industry's key long-term performance indicator, being 93.8, against a national average score of 86.3.
* As Arriva Rail London began operating London Overground services part way through in 2015, annual performance data is only available from 2016/17.